Manchester United's Juan Mata has praised Man City's Raheem Sterling and Arsenal star Hector Bellerin for the way they speak in the media.
Mata has been talking about the difficulties that can come with being a professional footballer and how players are often criticised for voicing their views.
Both Bellerin and Sterling have made stands against prejudice in recent months, and Mata — whose own Commong Goal campaign invests money from football into deprived sections of society — believes footballers can make a huge difference by speaking out, as the duo have done.
"I think there are still people that think 'why is this football player speaking about all these things?'" Mata told ESPN.
"Why not? That's my point of view. Why not?
"To be honest, it feels like in football, there's still many people only judging by the result or that you only have the right of an opinion if you win. Not necessarily does it have to be like that.
"Raheem, Hector, whoever speaks out, they can have bad days in a game, they can lose games but they still have these values and they still have the right to speak about what they think.
"When you don't win or when you don't play good you receive criticism. And I understand that. And that's fair.
"But there are still people who think that football players have to stick to their own thing. I don't agree."
Mata then explained that footballers can experience mental health difficulties, given the pressure they are under, regardless of how much they earn.
He added: “When you’re in a profession like this you have that responsibility in terms of so many people following you, so many people watching the games.
"I understand that it can be difficult to get out of this routine: the daily routine of training, getting ready because you want to play so you have to train well."
